It was a day two years in the making.

When the majority of the current 11- and 12-year-old Windham players were 10, they faced Goffstown in the Jimmy Fund baseball tournament.

In the fifth inning of that game, Windham held a 17- 9 advantage, but within the blink of an eye the powerful Goffstown team stormed back and eventually came away with a 24-22 victory.

Head coach Jim Bail didn’t forget, and neither did the players on his team. “That was the day we started preparing for Goffstown,” said Bail.

The preparation paid off. Windham edged its familiar foe on Monday, July 6, 2-1, advancing to the semifinals of the District 1 11- and 12- year-old Little League tournament winners’ bracket in the process.

Windham’s bats were silent early on; the entire lineup was set down in order through three innings.

The fourth inning was a different story. Windham’s hitters adjusted to the steady dose of curveballs they had seen in their first at-bats, and with his team trailing, 1-0, shortstop Josh Gallagher led off with an infield hit.

Starting pitcher Tim Hillman delivered a one-out double, and Gallagher knotted the contest at 1-1 when he scampered home on a passed ball.

Hillman scored soon after when Conner Moynihan drove in the eventual game-winning run with an RBI groundout.

With the victory, Windham advanced to play Derry American in a game scheduled to take place Wednesday, July 8.

Vanquishing its first opponent was a challenge for Windham, which squeaked past Manchester South, 3-2, on June 30, in a game that began the previous evening.

With the score tied at 1-1 after six full innings, the rains came, suspending the game until Tuesday, when Windham prevailed in extra innings.

The second round was easier, with Windham cruising past Pelham, 7-1, on Friday, July 3.

Bail said while pitching and defense have been critical to his team’s success, it’s the psychological aspect his squad has perfected.

“This team is really mentally tough, and we’ve spent a lot of time working on that,” said Bail, who cited Hillman as an example of his team’s resiliency. “He has such a calm presence on the mound, and he’s very mature for his age. He can locate (a pitch) on a dime, which helps a lot, too.”